by Rhonda Grice
“Miss Calder, may I call you Stormy?” He asked.
“Of course,” she replied. “I'm sure you and Aunt Lucy were on a first name basis. I see no need for that to change.”
Jake stood and looked at Stormy. “If you aren’t too tired I'd like to talk to you about the ranch.” Stormy rose and followed Jake to the ranch office. He sure seemed nervous, Stormy thought, for a man who has been running the ranch and helping Aunt Lucy for such a long time. Maybe it’s just my nerves, she decided, still unsure of her authority.
“When Lucy got sick she asked me to help her with the day to day bookkeeping of the ranch. That was about six months before she passed. I usually come in here about three times a week to work on things. I’ll continue to handle things so you don't have to worry about anything,” he added. “I know what’s going on so you can just enjoying getting to know Katy Marie and your new surroundings.”
Stormy surprised herself with her response. “That's not necessary Jake. I want to be involved with the day to day operation so I can learn.” Something in her gut told her he didn’t want her to see those books, so that is exactly what she was going to do.
“Well,” Jake stammered a little. “It’s just boring stuff. You should just let me take care of it.”
Somehow his words ruffled her feathers and she wasn't about to let a man start telling her what to do now. “Mr. Renner, I mean Jake. As I said your services won't be needed for this anymore. I'll look things over and if I have any questions I'll just ask you.” Something was going on here and I’m going to find out what it is, her mind screamed aloud. He looked as if we’re going to protest again, but thought better of it.
“Okay, but if you change your mind, all you have to do is ask.” He forced a smile, stood, and called to Jed that it was time to leave.
Stormy looked toward Jed who was staring at her intently, just as he had at the watering hole. She didn't know what was going on in that mind of his, but it was probably nothing good. Jed nodded, but without another word grabbed his hat and left with Jake.
After they left Katie Marie beat Stormy at two games of checkers and then they both went to bed. It had been a long day and if tomorrow held as many surprises as today, Stormy didn't know if she could handle it.
Chapter Four
In the morning light Stormy took in the lovely curtains and furniture in her room. It was obvious this had been her Aunt's room because her things were still in the closet. Carmen had told her to use anything she wanted and the rest could be packed away.
Stormy ran her fingers over the rich mahogany four poster bed, still finding it hard to believe this all belonged to her now. The closet had pants for horseback riding and dresses that made hers look like rags. After trying on the clothes she found some things that she could wear and folded everything else in a neat pile for Carmen to donate at the church.
The room also had a dresser with a mirror, and a wash stand with pitcher and bowl. It was the nicest room she had ever been in. She had to pinch herself to believe it all belonged to her now.
Stormy decided to wear the riding pants and shirt and looked herself over in the huge mirror. She didn't have a large mirror, like this one, at her home in Cedar Wells. The reflection that stared back at her was a slim, brown-haired woman. No longer could she act as a scared little girl. She had big responsibilities now and for some reason it was suddenly very important to her that she be able to handle them all.
There was so much to learn and her first stop, after breakfast, would be checking out the ranch by horseback and introducing herself to the hands. She was going to prove to Jake and Jed she could run this place as good as any man. If Aunt Lucy could do it, so could she. With her head held high she headed down to breakfast with Katy Marie before her day of work began.
The stables smelled of hay and animals, yet appeared to be kept up quite nice. Jose, a stable hand, had saddled her a different horse to ride so old wobbles could rest. As much as she loved old wobbles it was great to have a young spirited horse under her again.
According to Carmen the ranch had over four sections of land so there was no way she could see it all today, but she wanted to ride around the acres within ten miles of the house and try and get a feel of the land she was now responsible for.
The grasslands, perfect for raising cattle, stretched for miles and miles. The beauty of it all was staggering. Every so often a clump of trees brought shade for the cattle and a lushness to the land that filled her with pride. For the first time since her parents died she had something and someone who needed her.
Piercing rays of sun began to beat down on her after hours of riding through the pastures so Stormy headed back toward the ranch house. She hadn’t ridden far when she saw a group of men in the distance, heading toward the north part of the ranch. They sure seemed to be in a big hurry. They could be her ranch hands, but maybe not. She wondered what was up. There was only one way to find out. She dug her heels into the gray mare and took off. Just as she was gaining on them she was cut off by Jed Rivers, as he pulled his horse up beside her. She reigned to a stop, irritated by the delay.
“Afternoon Ma’am,” Jed tipped his hat. “Going to a fire? You want to have that horse step in a hole and break its neck?”
“Not that it's any of your business, but I was following those men that were riding out to the North Pastures. I wondered if something was wrong because they seemed to be in such a hurry.”
He glanced in their direction, a troubled look on his face. “I'm sure it's nothing for you to worry about, Ma’am. Probably just some strays needing brought in or something.”
Stormy saw a look on his face that made her think he knew the truth was not even close to what he just told her, but it was too late to catch up or find them now. What was he covering up?
Jed recovered quickly. “Are you enjoying the ranch so far? It's a beautiful place, don't you think?”
His questions surprised her. “It's lovely and I'll let you know right here and now Jed Rivers that I intend to learn everything I need to know about the Double LL. I’m going to make sure this ranch stays a success. It's the least I can do for Aunt Lucy.” Her words were filled with determination.
Jed studied her for moment then continued. “Well, guess I'd better get back to work, Ma’am. See you at supper.” He tipped his hat and rode off without another word.
Yeah, she could hardly wait! And why did it irritate her so that he called her Ma’am, instead of Stormy?
Chapter Five
It had been two weeks since Stormy arrived at the Double LL and it amazed her how much there was to do. It didn’t take her long to figure Aunt Lucy’s accounting method out and she was painstakingly studying every sale and purchase over the past year. Math had always come easy for her, so figuring the profit and loss each month wasn’t that hard. A few entries looked a little suspect and it looked like she would have to speak to Jake after all.
Carmen carried the bushel basket with wet clothes out back to hang on the line. As usual Carmen was singing as she worked, and Stormy followed her outside. “Carmen, here let me help you.” Stormy took the bed sheet from Carmen’s hands.
“Miss Stormy, you have too much to do to be helping me. Laundry is Carmen’s job.” Carmen tried to take the bed sheet back from Stormy.
“Nonsense! We all live here and should help each other. Besides laundry is one thing I’m an expert at” Stormy said. After all she had been doing it for a living for almost a year now.
The lines for hanging wash were out back of the house and had a good view of the acreage to the North and Northeast. Halfway through their chore Stormy saw five horsemen riding out toward the North pastures; and again, just like the men she saw before, they were in a huge hurry.
“Carmen, do you know where those ranch hands are going? I thought the men were working out in the South pasture today gathering up some prime cattle for the restaurant in town.”
“No senorita, I don't. But they go every week it seems, and they a
re gone for about half the day.”
“I guess I’ll just ask Jake,” Stormy replied. But the more she thought about it the more she thought a surprise visit might be in order. She handed the wash basket to Carmen and said. “I think I’ll just go see for myself. See you tonight. Please watch Katy Marie for me until I get back.”
“Yes Senorita, no problem.”
The gray mare had become her favorite to ride and she saddled it with speed before the men could get too far ahead of her. They had disappeared from sight by the time she got to the last place she had seen them, but followed on in the same direction. After an hour she saw the smoke through the trees. Not a lot, but enough to let her know where they were.
Stormy eased in slowly to see what they were doing. As she got closer she could see that the men were branding some young cattle. As she approached, a man looked up and his expression was frightening. He said something quickly to the men and met her head on. Even with him on foot and her on a horseback the man seemed a force to be reckoned with. Stormy recognized the ranch hand as Nate Spartan, one of Jake Renner’s men.
Nate Spartan walked to where Stormy sat upon her mare. “What are you doing way out here, Miss Calder?”
“I wanted to see what you and the men were doing,” she replied honestly.
“Well as you can see we are just branding some of the cattle.” His voice cracked as he attempted to control his irritation.
“I thought our cattle were out in the south pasture right now. Where did these come from?” she asked.
“Strays”, he replied.
“So you have strays, right here in this very spot, every week?” Stormy asked, looking him straight in the eye.
Nate looked straight back. “Yep, every week some of these young ones wander out here and we have to round them up. You obviously haven't ever worked on a ranch, have you?” He asked, trying to insinuate she didn't know how things worked.
Stormy, seeing his clenched fist decided not to press the issue anymore. She took a look around and spoke to a few of the men, but to no avail. None of the men offered much in the way of conversation. Before leaving she watched as the men branded a couple of calves just to let them know they weren’t running Stormy Calder off. Something just didn't look right but she wasn't sure what it was. As she looked at the branding iron and heard the sizzle it made again the animals hide, it made her cringe.
Quickly Stormy started the ride back to the ranch but soon slowed the mare’s gate as the wind blew her dress up and over her head on more than one occasion. The wind had been at her back on the way out and she had left the ranch so fast there was no time to don a pair of pants.
“To blazes with this,” she voiced out loud; then proceeded to tie her skirt up around her waist. There she was, riding with only her underpants between her and the saddle. The howling winds and hooves of the gray mare covered the sound of another horse fast approaching from behind. Stormy looked to her right and Jed suddenly appeared. That lop sided grin of his spread from ear to ear.
She reined the gray mare to a stop. “Do you always have to appear when I'm indisposed?” She yelled at him.
“Well gosh darn it, it ain't my fault you are always parading around me in your underpants!” He yelled back.
Hastily she untied her dress and let it fall. “Where did you come from? Were you back there with those ranch hands? I didn't see you.”
“No, I was just coming back from checking the north fence line. Why?”
“It seems that some of the guys are branding cattle way out here,” she replied.
“Out here! Why they should....well, I mean they probably have a good reason for it. I'm on my way back to the ranch so I'll just ride along if that's okay. We'll go slowly so you won't be tempted to show me your underpants again,” he teased her.
At first Stormy was mad but when she realized Jed was just having a little fun at her expense, she surprised herself and him by laughing as well.
The rest of the ride back was very pleasant and Jed Rivers wasn't all that bad to hang out with, she surmised. She just wondered if she could trust him. There was something he and Jake were hiding. She just wondered if they were connected.
Chapter Six
Whatever was going on at the ranch would have to wait. It was time to go back to Cedar Wells and pack up her other belongings, such as they were. She also needed to tell her laundry customers she wouldn’t be back. In the short time she had been at the Double LL it already felt like home. After this last trip, Cedar Wells would be nothing more than a memory.
The stairs gave their familiar creek as Stormy headed down to supper. Jake, Jed, and Katy Marie were already at the table waiting for her.
Both men stood at her entrance. “I'm sorry to keep you all waiting on me” she said.
Jake smiled sweetly, pulled out her chair and replied. “No problem, we just got here ourselves.”
Carmen brought in another great meal, just as she always did. Fried pork chops, mashed potatoes, and of course good old country biscuits and gravy.
Katy Marie was extra excited this evening it seemed and was chattering away as the foods were passed around the table. Today had been the first day of school and already the teacher was planning a play for the children. She was going to have a lead role later in the fall and wanted Stormy to help her practice her part.
"You Bet I will" Stormy chimed in. “What part are you playing?”
“I'm going to be an angel who helps lost children find their way back home after they get lost in the woods. It's a very special part and the teacher said I'd be just perfect for it.” She smiled excitedly.
“Well, I know you're my little angel,” Jed tweaked Katy Marie's nose gently. She giggled and went back to eating.
Stormy could not help but be drawn to the gentleness that seemed to be in Jed, but she still had to keep her guard up. Her thoughts were interrupted by Jake.
“What are the books looking like for the month? You got any questions for me?” He asked. “I don't mind helping,” he said again.
“The books look pretty good,” she answered. “It seems we made a good profit on the few cattle we sold to our neighbor, but the cost of supplies seemed a little high for our size herd and ranch hands we have. Do you know anything about that?” She asked.
“Oh, Stormy, I just remembered, I promised one of the guys in the bunk house I'd play in their poker game tonight. We can go over the books tomorrow or the next day?” He rose, put on his hat, and said a quick goodnight.
“Well, he sure left in a hurry,” Jed said.
“It seemed like he couldn't get out of here fast enough,” Stormy replied.
Chapter seven
Sounds of the wagon stopping out front made Stormy quickly finish her packing. She rushed downstairs and was surprised to see Jed Rivers was there as well. He approached Stormy and indicated she hand him her bags, which she did. She followed him to the wagon and saw his gear stowed in the back as well. It appears he thinks he is going with her on the trip.
“What are your things doing in the wagon?” Stormy asked.
“Jake says no woman should be traveling alone so he told me to go with you.”
“Well, Jake Renner is not the boss of me and I can make the trip by myself. I made it here by myself, didn’t I?” Stormy asked, hands on her hips.
Jed walked over and stood mere inches from her creamy skin and full pink lips. “If you recall Ma’am, you met up with some kind of “peeper” on your way here,” he couldn’t help but chuckle. “Can’t be too safe, you know.”
She couldn’t help but laugh and decided to give in. Company might be kind of nice, especially when they looked like Jed Rivers! “Well you can go on one condition,” Stormy pointed her finger at Jed. “If we are going to spend almost a week together you’d better start calling me Stormy.”
“Alright…Stormy…Say your goodbyes and we will be on our way. Need to make as much distance as we can before nightfall.”
Stormy said goodbye t
o Katy Marie and promised her she would be back as soon as possible and told her to be a good girl for Carmen.
The air was crisp and the morning sun felt good upon her skin, but she knew the weather in Kansas would be changing soon and they had to get a move on for this trip. It would take three days to get there, at least one day to gather up her belongings, and three days back. So she would be away from the ranch almost an entire week. This worried Stormy because of Jake. She wasn’t certain he was doing something wrong but was starting to get very suspicious of him. The fact he kept ignoring her attempts to go over the books was one reason. Of course she could question Jed, but maybe he was in on it with Jake. She didn’t know if she could trust any of the men at this point.
Stormy was sitting in silence, thinking, as the rocking wagon relaxed her. They had used the chuck wagon because it was covered and Stormy could sleep in it at night and Jed could sleep on the ground. They had plenty of food and the chuck wagon was equipped with barrels to hold water, utensils, and anything else they would need. It was really quite a nice set up. In some ways better than what she had been used to at home.
That is, her old home. She had only been at the Double LL ranch a short time now but already she loved it. And Katy Marie had a special place in her heart as well as Carmen. She found she liked running a big ranch. The daily hustle and bustle kept ranch life exciting, whether it was ordering supplies for the bunkhouse or helping Carmen cook in the kitchen. For the first time in a long time she wasn't alone anymore.